DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle women's basketball team was unable to sustain a first-half lead in a 76-69 Sunshine State Conference loss to Saint Leo (13-12, 9-8 SSC) at the ICI Center on Wednesday. The Eagles led by as many as 11 points in the first half but were outscored 46-30 in the second 20 minutes to fall to 9-15 on the year and 7-11 in conference play. 

The highlight of Wednesday's game for the Eagles was Nikki Tucker's double-double. The junior led all players with a season-high 28 points and pulled down 12 rebounds to record her fourth double-double of the year. Sarah Jones totaled 14 points, and Sydney Jones tallied 13 points and eight rebounds in the Eagle effort.

Both teams struggled offensively early in the game, particularly from long range. The Lions managed just three field goals in the first quarter, while the Eagles shot 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from the field. The teams were a combined 1-for-10 from behind the three-point line, with the first trey of the game coming from Tucker with 1:01 left in the first. 

The second quarter saw the percentages tick up for both teams as ERAU went 10-for-17 and Saint Leo went 8-for-20 in that frame. After the Lions cut a 10-point Eagle advantage to just three points (22-19) at the 6:33 mark, Sarah Jones grabbed a rebound and raced to the basket for a score. That score keyed a 15-5 run that allowed the Eagles to widen the gap to 37-28 before taking a 39-30 lead into the halftime break. 

The third quarter proved to be ERAU's undoing. The Eagles managed just four field goals and a free throw in the third 10-minute period. The Lions capitalized on the Eagles' shooting woes to outscore the home team 21-9, and with 59 seconds left in the frame, Alex Button's three put Saint Leo back in front (50-48) for the first time since the opening play of the first quarter.

Saint Leo continued to add to its tally to start the fourth quarter and with 4:07 left to play the Lions' lead was 10 (67-57). With 2:12 remaining, Imani Jones broke a two-minute scoring drought with a jump shot in the paint and back-to-back Sarah Jones free throws made it a six-point game (67-61) with 1:39 showing on the clock. 

The Eagles seemed on the verge of a comeback when Tucker drilled back-to-back threes to make it a three-point (70-67) game with 29 seconds left in regulation, but ERAU managed just one more field goal down the stretch and the Lions connected on each of their last eight free throws to seal the win.

Alex Button was the leading scorer for the Lions with 27 points, while Amanada Ulrich added 21 points in the win.

The Eagles' next game will be on the road at Eckerd at 2 p.m. on Saturday.